Please critique my slalom video

[RichSiegmund]

Hi Folks,

 

I would appreciate some critique about these videos of a slalom run I made this week. There are two versions, one at normal speed and the other one slowed down to 30% (and zoomed).

 

I'm a 40-something guy who has skied open water a few times each year since childhood. I got introduced to the slalom course for the first time in 2011, and since then I'm fortunate to have a chance during summer months to get weekly runs through the course with feedback from quality instructors.

 

Since 2011 I've probably made about 150-200 runs through a buoy course. I've been working to unlearn several bad habits (bent at waist, leaning back, etc) but I have a long way to go.

 

I've been running at 15' off, 28mph and have had a few (actually 2) passes where I got around 6 buoys, but in those I didn't hit the entrance gates. I'm trying to ignore entrance gates (mostly) because hitting them often screws up the rest of my run, and I figure that timing alone will resolve entrance gates once I'm better overall.

 

The video I selected is from this past Tuesday and is the BEST form I showed out of 6 passes. Ironically my first pass got 6 buoys but was pretty ugly form. I'm happy with the progress I made (although it seems that I've taken a long time to even get this far) but I WANT MORE! There is something magical about carving through water around a buoy with arm extended and body inches about the water, and I want to make better magic!

 

The work areas I personally see are these ...

- get more stacked (ie: taller) in wake crossings and have the ski more on edge. I think I'm scared to fully commit and therefore sacrificing crosswise speed and unintentionally creating downcourse speed

- quicker edge transition after 2nd wake crossing. I believe I ski flat (or nearly so) for too long before carving around buoys

 

Please help me with anything you can see from these videos !!

 

slow motion:

 

normal speed:

[ForrestGump]

Good skiing. A couple of things will really help you to improve. You squat down as soon as you roll out into your pullout. When you do so, you bend the rear leg and it never straightens out. Straighten out that rear leg, which will move the hips up more over the center of the ski. It's critical that you get your shoulders behind your hips and the only way you're going to be able to do so is to get your hips up over the center of the ski as opposed to the tail where they're at now. Another thing is arm position. You look like you're trying to pull yourself along with your arms. Relax them out. The arms always need to be straight, as they are just an extension of the rope. The more you can straighten them, the more you can lean against them and thus the more edge angle you will get. Forget about buoys and work on these things using Seth's whip and lean drills.

[RichSiegmund]

Thanks @Shane and @OB

 

My next chance to ski is this evening and I'll try to put your suggestions to work!